Hi, I'm looking for Pine Bark Fines in Montreal. Just went on the website for Home Hardware because I have a store that will order for me but I can't tell what the pine bark fine equivalent is for what they have listed under soil amendments.
Thanks, if anyone has experience, much appreciated. This is what I have found so far at other locations. My Home Hardware store doesn't carry the soil amendments - they would order it for me.
Cacoa shell mulch
Hemlock mulch
Pine bark nuggets (again not visible and I'm thinking this is what I need)
Cedar mulch
ProMix BX with Mycrorrizae - 75% peat, perlite, vermiculite and dolomitic and calcite limestone with mycorrizae.
Fafard has a container mix - Coconut fiber, peat moss,and biosol compost.
I would really appreciate anyone's input here.
thanks,
sharon
Looking for Pine Bark Fines - Home Hardware anyone???
hi. ill throw in my 2 cents..
ive learned much from posts here..
especially tapla !!!
this year i will use the 5:1:1 mix..
check out the posts..
as for what your stores have available..
its size of the material that matters..
i use pine bark mulch from lowes..its there smallest
size..and it mixes well with my pumice..and plants i pot up..
i would think the pine bark nuggets could be a good choice..
i know ProMix BX is super potting mix..i cant get it here..so..:(
also Fafard is a superior mix too .. again..i cant get it here..:(
i use to use alot of coco coir..but not for pots..it retains way to much
moisture.. for my uses..
do check out the posts here on potting mix..
you may find making your own works best for you..
let us know how it goes !!!!
good luck
Thanks for the encouragement. There is so much information I'm getting confused and discouraged. The problem with the pine nuggets is that I can't see the size of the nuggets. Pieces shouldn't be larger than 1/2" . The pine bark mulch that I found online from Home Hardware doesn't give any indication of size. Hemlock would work if its the proper size. Àhhhhh!!!!
The ProMix Bx is mostly peat, so I need pine or fir or hemlock that isn't shredded. I appreciate everyone's help and suggestions. Getting discouraged....
Sharon
I was suprised to have some luck with a local landscaping company's bagged Landscapers Mix, (mostly pine bark fines with some peat and a little sand)
I think I have found some - which my local Home Hardware can order - All Treat Canada Red pine bark mulch. Also, I found another Promix -HP and a vegetable and herb one too. Just trying to get my head around some of this stuff.
decherdt, does your local landscaping co. sell to the general public?
Hi Yes they do sell to the general public. But they also carry a hemlock mulch which is looking good right now except that a 30 litre bag is going for $6.50 and I would need at least 12 of those. Not sure what to do.
Hugobee
you need to take a vacation to FL, around Bradenton, there is a store that sells the pine bark fines, and it is wonderful. I use to live in Bradenton, and now the store is over an hour away but worth the drive for sure.
Pine bark fines are much smaller than the Pine bark nuggets you listed. Although I think if you had a shredder you could run the nuggets through and make your own fines.
So what did you end up using?
Jan
its interesting how different the quality of pine bark fines the "big stores"
have.. one i started with..there store was closest..i was ok..but alot of big bark
strips..so in my running around..found fines at different "big store" ..had 20% more
volume,and was just a bit less $$..and the fines were very uniform..and size i wanted..
go figure..LOL i do one thing now i didnt do when started using fines..i dump the bags
in a big wheel barrow..fill with water..and let the debris settle..then use the fines..
i get about a gallon of debris..i dont want this in my mix..as tapla would tell us..:)
keep potting mix same size to avoid perking.. :) i find with this method ..my pots drain
great..
Sorry, just checked in. Haven't been really looking at the garden forums these days. I ended up using hemlock, and ProMix BX, some peat, and all the other good ingredients necessary. The pine bark nuggets were too big, I don't have a shredder and it became way too much for me to handle. I had great results, considering the weather was a nightmare. All in all, I learned that there will be changes for next season, starting with the elimination of some tomatoes and that the grow bags were wonderful, but nothing less than 20 gallon. They dry out too fast.
Sharon
Check out this link. It'll give you a good idea of what you should be looking for.
Also, read the rest of the thread for more input.
Linda
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=9731178
ProMix, Fafard and Sunshine are all high quality mixes. But they have a lot of peat and retain more water than I prefer. (I can't cure myself of over-watering).
I agree that Pine bark nuggets are likely to be best of what you've listed.
But if you want mostly 1/10" or 2-4 mm nuggets, even "fine bark nuggets" are likely to have more big ones that you would like. You'll probably have to screen them, and then maybe chop or pound or rub the big ones to break them down to smaller sizes.
But if the Hemlock mulch is Hemlock bark, and comes in long fibers or shreds, try some of them, too! The best bark I ever found had many shreds or chips 1-3 mm thick, and 5-15 mm long.
Pine bark mulch, where I live, usually is "all sizes", with lots of powder and lots of very big pieces. Also, it tends to have soil and twigs mixed in, and Home depot lets it get moist inside the bag, which leads to anaerobic fermentation. Logyard trash!
>> hemlock mulch which is looking good right now except that a 30 litre bag is going for $6.50 and I would need at least 12 of those.
Yikes, $6.50 for one cubic foot? I've been paying $2.25 for 2 cubic feet of clean, dry fine pine bark nuggets with very little powder and only 1/3 - 1/2 of the bag much bigger than 1/4". I keep meaning to clean my electric lawn mower really well, sharpen the blade, and chop those chunks. But it's easier to just use the big chunks for mulch and the grit for potting mix.
>> the grow bags were wonderful, but nothing less than 20 gallon. They dry out too fast.
With great drainage comes poor water retention! I add 10% to 20% of a mix like ProMix to retain more water, when i have very little bark powder.
I wish someone would do double-SCREENING for me, eliminating both the powder (less than 1 mm) and the chunks (more than 5-6 mm). But I'm too cheap to pay for it even if I did find it!
I like the idea of "floating" the fines, but I would probably discard the fines and keep the grit.
I wonder if dry bark could be winnowed?
i have some just gone into dormant amorphophallus titanums,hewettii and they need
new potting mix.. IN THE MIDDLE OF WINTER! HELLO.. LOL
:) so..off to HD..nadda..they didnt even have any peat..sigh..so off to lowes..and yea..they had
7 - 2cf bags of the small pine "nugget" mulch..so i bought all..
i have thought of making a screen for my bark.. but i had good success with soaking them..skimming what floats..and just putting rest in gardens..
i agree rick..even the "best" pine bark im finding locally..which isnt great.. there is a real
mix of sizes ..even in the "small nuggets" i buy..
i do wish there was a local source of pumice rock..buying on ebay is good..but the shipping
is 2X what the pumice cost.. sigh... :(
>> making a screen for my bark.
All it takes is 1/4" hardware cloth and a support.
(Having 1/8" mesh would give more options, and 1/2" mesh lets you cut out the big stuff really fast.)
I found the support I use in the metal recycling dumpster at work. Steel wire shelving. Do you have remesh or hog panels?
thanks for pics of your screen rick...
i have to hit HD this weekend..i'll have to go get some 1/2" mesh..
i need to hit one of the 2nd hand stores..see if they have any metal shelving
as you suggest..will make good structure for the mesh.. good idea!!
the bark i used in last couple pots ..that i just unpotted corms.. was pretty
good sized..in 1/2" - 3/4" ..i was amazed how much "composted down in the
pot..lol.. not really composted..but.it did break down more than i expected..
the pumice i sure like more than perlite..
My understanding is that any mix with very different sizes of particles is more prone to compaction than a mix with mostly-all-the-same-size particles.